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Rape and Sexual Assault

by Marianne Cook, LICSW, Clinician, Harvard University Mental Health Service

Please note that this article contains some graphic content due to the nature of the topic.

One of out every six women and one out of every 33 men in the United States is a victim of rape or sexual assault during his or her lifetime. College women are particularly likely to be victims; one in four is raped or sexually assaulted by the time she graduates. Although the specific legal definitions of rape and sexual assault vary by state, rape is generally defined as forced sexual intercourse, including anal, oral, and vaginal penetration. Penetration may be by a body part or by an object. Sexual assault is typically defined as unwanted sexual contact, such as groping or fondling, that stops short of rape. Both acts are criminal and perpetrators can be prosecuted in court. Anyone can be a victim of rape or sexual assault: men, women, and children; people of any age, ethnicity, and sexual orientation. About 73 percent of rape and sexual assault victims know their attacker; among teenagers, this rate is approximately 93 percent. [More]

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Resource Organizations » Rape and Sexual Assault

12 listing(s), including 2 with hotlines and 2 offering support groups

In Massachusetts

Boston Area Rape Crisis Center (BARCC)

As the second oldest rape crisis center in the United States, the Boston Area Rape Crisis Center (BARCC) has been highly visible locally and nationally in the fight against violence against women. First initiated as a grassroots, activist endeavor, the organization continues to be supported by over 135 BARCC volunteers annually. Volunteers provide hotline crisis counseling, adolescent and family services, support groups, medical advocacy and legal advocacy. BARCC also provides violence prevention education workshops for schools, community groups, teen centers and businesses throughout the greater Boston area.

BARCC provides free services to survivors of rape and sexual assault, their friends and family, regardless of sex, race, physical/developmental disabilities, income, ethnicity, class, age, religion, or sexual orientation. We are able to provide services in English, Spanish, Haitian/Creole and French.

Family Justice Center of Boston

The Family Justice Center (FJC) of Boston provides a safe and welcoming environment where you can talk about your experiences and explore your options. You may need help finding your way through the legal system and understanding your rights as a victim. You may want to know if and how your child has been harmed, and by whom. You may be looking for the support that you need to stay safe and start over. At the FJC, individuals and families have access to a wide range of free services offered by a diverse group of partner organizations. FJC Partners are here to serve all victims and survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault and child abuse - including non-English speakers, immigrants (regardless of your status) and gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender individuals. Childcare is provided during your visit. All services are offered free of charge.

Fenway Community Health Center, Violence Recovery Program

The Violence Recovery Program (VRP) at Fenway Community Health was founded in 1986 and was formerly known as the "Victim Recovery Program." The VRP provides counseling, support groups, advocacy, and referral services to Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) victims of bias crime, domestic violence, sexual assault and police misconduct. Other services include a support group for LGBT domestic violence survivors, the region's only support group for male survivors of rape and sexual assault, advocacy with the courts and police, and assistance with victim compensation.

Click for a direct link to the Violence Recovery Program.

Jane Doe Inc.

Jane Doe Inc., The Massachusetts Coalition Against Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence brings together organizations and people committed to ending domestic violence and sexual assault. JDI creates social change by addressing the root causes of this violence, and promotes justice, safety and healing for survivors. JDI advocates for responsive public policy, promotes collaboration, raises public awareness, and supports its member organizations to provide comprehensive prevention and intervention services. The website includes listings of sexual assault crisis centers in Massachusetts as well as information on sexual violence and guides for safety planning, getting help, and finding resources for specific populations (e.g. LGBTQ).

Maria Talks

Maria Talks is a statewide sexual health hotline and website designed specifically for Massachusetts teens covering topics such as pregnancy, sexual violence and GLBTQ. AIDS Action Committee (AAC) developed this website with funding from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (MDPH).

Newton-Wellesley Hospital Domestic and Sexual Violence Services

Newton-Wellesley Hospital provides free and confidential domestic and sexual violence services for survivors of domestic and sexual violence. The Hospital program works to provide comprehensive, culturally-competent care specific to the needs of the individual survivor.

Outside Massachusetts

Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network (RAINN)

The Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network is the nation's largest anti-sexual assault organization. RAINN operates the National Sexual Assault Hotline and carries out programs to prevent sexual assault, help victims and ensure that rapists are brought to justice.

After Silence

After Silence is designed to help victims become survivors and communicate in the recovery of sexual violence. Its mission is to support, empower, validate, and educate survivors, as well as their families and supporters. The core of the organization is an online message board where survivors come together in a mutually supportive and safe environment. There is also a resource library with information related to sexual violence and its aftermath.

National Center on Domestic and Sexual Violence

The National Center on Domestic and Sexual Violence provides training and consultation, influences policy, and promotes collaboration with the goal of ending domestic and sexual violence. The website provides links to extensive resources related to relationship violence within specific communities. There is a special section on the organization's efforts to stop relationship violence in military families: www.ncdsv.org/ncd_militaryresponse.html.

National Child Traumatic Stress Network

Established by Congress in 2000, the National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN) is a unique collaboration of academic and community-based service centers whose mission is to raise the standard of care and increase access to services for traumatized children and their families across the United States. Combining knowledge of child development, expertise in the full range of child traumatic experiences, and attention to cultural perspectives, the NCTSN serves as a national resource for developing and disseminating evidence-based interventions, trauma-informed services, and public and professional education. The website includes information on the types of traumatic stress and resources for parents and caregivers whose children are experiencing traumatic stress.

National Sexual Violence Resource Center

The NSVRC coordinates a range of special projects that address building collaborative and culturally specific approaches to preventing and responding to sexual violence. Through innovation, resource sharing and partnership development the NSVRC seeks to create positive social change. The website includes listings for every state of resource organizations related to sexual violence.

Sex Addicts Anonymous

As a fellowship of recovering addicts, Sex Addicts Anonymous offers a message of hope to anyone who suffers from sex addiction. Through long and painful experience, we came to realize that we were powerless over our sexual thoughts and behaviors and that our preoccupation with sex was causing progressively severe adverse consequences for us, our families, and our friends. Despite many failed promises to ourselves and attempts to change, we discovered that we were unable to stop acting out sexually by ourselves. Local meetings provide an environment of acceptance, safety, and encouragement for learning how to apply the Twelve Step Program in our lives. Although each group within SAA is autonomous, meetings typically consist of readings from recovery literature and sharing how the Twelve Steps have led to recovery for us. Meetings also offer opportunities for learning how to reach out and to serve other sex addicts.The only requirement for membership in SAA is the desire to stop addictive sexual behavior. There are no fees or dues. Local groups are self-supporting from voluntary contributions of their members.

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Additional Sources of Information

• New York Times Health Guides: Overview — Rape

36th Annual National Suicide Prevention Week, September 5th - 11th, 2010. See Families, Community Systems and Suicide, from the American Association of Suicidology.

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The work of Project INTERFACE is supported in part by the Massachusetts Child Psychiatry Access Project (MCPAP).